Limitless Cultivation: I Can Master Every Profession!

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But his satisfaction lasted only a moment, because in the next instant he could fully see the face of the one who had landed on him.

Just as he had guessed, it wasn't anyone else but Liang Yuexin, but unlike what he had expected, the expression on her face was a mix of confusion, and anger?

Her face was streaked with tears, still present even if partly dried, as if she had been crying recently, which confused him for a moment.

But setting that aside, the relieved or joyful expression he had expected from her warm reception was nowhere to be seen; instead, she fixed him with a murderous glare.

"Hey, everything ok-" a fist drove into his cheek, and before he could process it, more followed.

"Bastard, you nearly gave me a heart attack!

I bet this was one of your tricks to make fun of me, wasn't it?" she said, her voice angry, but hiding something else inside.

" You crazy woman, what kind of logic is tha-"

At first, Zhu Rong panicked at the sudden attack and for a moment got angry, but then he immediately noticed that the force behind her blows wasn't strong at all.

In fact, they were soft, almost like caresses.

He shifted his gaze to look at her better and saw that her expression of anger was slightly cracked, and it didn't take him long to understand what was happening.

He closed his eyes, letting out a sigh to calm his mind, before opening them again and saying:

"It's my fault, I'm sorry, and I made you worry," he said in a gentle tone.

Hearing his words, Liang Yuexin, who had almost fallen into another spiral of swirling emotions, this time more of relief than sadness, composed herself, or at least tried, and looked straight into his eyes.

"Hmm, it's good that you understood. Be more careful next," she said, trying to make her voice sound more severe, but without success.

Zhu Rong was a little caught off guard by the woman's unexpected attitude, and for a moment he didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but then noticing their current position, he couldn't help but say,

"Ahem, even if I don't mind this position, you're heavy."

he said, breaking the quiet, gentle mood that had formed for a moment.

"I'm hurt and-" he was about to continue explaining that he had injuries on his abdomen that were hurting a bit, but just like before, he didn't have time to finish the sentence before another blow landed on his face, making him twist like a cockroach in pain.

Liang Yuexin, who had also noticed their position, was about to get up when she heard his words and couldn't help getting angry as she delivered another punch before moving away.

Zhu Rong, with his face pulsating in pain from the strong blow he had received, couldn't help but look at the woman with a resentful expression, before calming himself.

'Well, I guess I asked for it this time,' he thought, deciding not to waste any more time.

Even Liang Yuexin, whose face had transformed into an angry one for the moment, calmed down, as a brief sense of relief appeared on her face.

The short outburst seemed to clear her mind while finally allowing her to ease a bit of the mental exhaustion that had built up due to the series of emotions that had hit her in such a short time.

A smile bloomed on her face as she turned to the other side, deciding to give him a bit of a break and tell him she was glad he was okay, but she didn't get the chance, as in the next instant she was hit by a strong gust of air and, in an instant, was violently thrown backward at high speed.

The attack was sudden and unexpected, so much so that when she realized she had been hit, she was already tens of meters in the air.

At first, she thought it had been an enemy appearing out of nowhere to attack her, but she immediately realized that the elemental energy contained in the attack was familiar.

'He… why did he do that?' she wondered, her expression a mix of surprise and betrayal, as she struggled to move her gaze while her body began to fall downward.

The blow was strong and violent enough to send her flying several dozen meters away, yet, even with her mind dazed from the attack, she still managed to identify the spot where she had been before being hit.

And at that moment, she saw him, near the entrance of the collapsed tunnel. Standing there was the figure of the boy so familiar to her, his hand extended forward with traces of elemental energy vanishing from it.

It had indeed been him, yes, him... but why?

The question passed through her mind, but it didn't linger long before the answer arrived.

Her eyes widened as her gaze slid from the unreadable expression on his face down to his abdomen.

There, at the center of his chest, something dark and sharp protruded outward, wide and thick enough to leave a terrifying hole right where his heart should have been.

Behind him, immersed in the darkness of the collapsed tunnel, loomed an unnatural being. Tall, thin to the point of appearing elongated beyond any human proportion, it radiated a disturbing aura.

Its face was twisted into an unnaturally wide smile, bigger than any face could naturally contain.

Empty white eyes glimmered like extinguished beacons, while its skin, a blackish red, exuded a sense of rot and violence.

The creature's expression was a paradox, simultaneously ecstatic and mocking, as if it took pleasure in the act of tearing apart the body before it while also despising anyone who witnessed it.

Her mind shattered in front of that horror.

Her heart raced, yet her gaze remained fixed on Zhu Rong's body.

His body trembled slightly, convulsed by spasms, and slowly, as if each movement were torture, he lifted his head.

His face was torn, features twisted in pain, while rivulets of blood ran from the corners of his mouth.

Yet, his eyes sought hers, staring at her with a clarity that pierced her like a blade.

His lips moved, slowly, silently. And even though she was already too far away, she perfectly understood the meaning of that final gesture.

"Run."

At that instant, the creature's smile widened even more.

Its mouth opened, deforming beyond any natural limit, then closed.

A single, chilling bite echoed in the air. And in the next moment, Zhu Rong's head was ripped off cleanly, while his body collapsed to the ground like an empty shell.